Islam and Democracy in the Middle East

Islam and Democracy in the Middle East PDF Author: Larry Diamond
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 360

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Book Description
A comprehensive assessment of the origins and staying power of Middle East autocracies, as well as a sober account of the struggles of state reformers and opposition forces to promote civil liberties, competitive elections and a pluralistic vision of Islam. Drawing on the insights of some 25 leading Western and Middle Eastern scholars, the book highlights the dualistic and often contradictory nature of political liberalization. Yemen suggest, political liberalization - as managed by the state - not only opens new spaces for debate and criticism, but is also used as a deliberate tactic to avoid genuine democratization. In several chapters on Iran, the authors analyze the benefits and costs of limited reform. There, the electoral successes of President Mohammad Khatami and his reformist allies inspired a new generation but have not as yet undermined the clerical establishment's power. By contrast, in Turkey a party with Islamist roots is moving a discredited system beyond decades of conflict and paralysis, following a stunning election victory in 2002. force for change. While acknowledging the enduring attraction of radical Islam throughout the Arab world, the concluding chapters carefully assess the recent efforts of Muslim civil society activists and intellectuals to promote a liberal Islamic alternative. Their struggles to affirm the compatibility of Islam and pluralistic democracy face daunting challenges, not least of which is the persistent efforts of many Arab rulers to limit the influence of all advocates of democracy, secular or religious.

Islam and Democracy in the Middle East

Islam and Democracy in the Middle East PDF Author: Larry Diamond
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 360

Get Book Here

Book Description
A comprehensive assessment of the origins and staying power of Middle East autocracies, as well as a sober account of the struggles of state reformers and opposition forces to promote civil liberties, competitive elections and a pluralistic vision of Islam. Drawing on the insights of some 25 leading Western and Middle Eastern scholars, the book highlights the dualistic and often contradictory nature of political liberalization. Yemen suggest, political liberalization - as managed by the state - not only opens new spaces for debate and criticism, but is also used as a deliberate tactic to avoid genuine democratization. In several chapters on Iran, the authors analyze the benefits and costs of limited reform. There, the electoral successes of President Mohammad Khatami and his reformist allies inspired a new generation but have not as yet undermined the clerical establishment's power. By contrast, in Turkey a party with Islamist roots is moving a discredited system beyond decades of conflict and paralysis, following a stunning election victory in 2002. force for change. While acknowledging the enduring attraction of radical Islam throughout the Arab world, the concluding chapters carefully assess the recent efforts of Muslim civil society activists and intellectuals to promote a liberal Islamic alternative. Their struggles to affirm the compatibility of Islam and pluralistic democracy face daunting challenges, not least of which is the persistent efforts of many Arab rulers to limit the influence of all advocates of democracy, secular or religious.

Uncharted Journey

Uncharted Journey PDF Author: Thomas Carothers
Publisher: Carnegie Endowment
ISBN: 0870032860
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 313

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Book Description
The United States faces no greater challenge today than successfully fulfilling its new ambition of helping bring about a democratic transformation of the Middle East. Uncharted Journey contributes a wealth of concise, illuminating insights on this subject, drawing on the contributors' deep knowledge of Arab politics and their substantial experience with democracy-building in other parts of the world. The essays in part one vividly dissect the state of Arab politics today, including an up-to-date examination of the political shock wave in the region produced by the invasion of Iraq. Part two and three set out a provocative exploration of the possible elements of a democracy promotion strategy for the region. The contributors identify potential false steps as well as a productive way forward, avoiding the twin shoals of either reflexive pessimism in the face of the daunting obstacles to Arab democratization or an unrealistic optimism that fails to take into account the region's political complexities. Contributors include Eva Bellin (Hunter College), Daniel Brumberg (Carnegie Endowment), Thomas Carothers (Carnegie Endowment), Michele Dunne (Georgetown University), Graham Fuller, Amy Hawthorne (Carnegie Endowment), Marina Ottaway (Carnegie Endowment), and Richard Youngs (Foreign Policy Centre).

Liberation Technology

Liberation Technology PDF Author: Larry Diamond
Publisher: JHU Press
ISBN: 1421405687
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 205

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Book Description
Liberation Technology brings together cutting-edge scholarship from scholars and practitioners at the forefront of this burgeoning field of study. An introductory section defines the debate with a foundational piece on liberation technology and is then followed by essays discussing the popular dichotomy of liberation'' versus "control" with regard to the Internet and the sociopolitical dimensions of such controls. Additional chapters delve into the cases of individual countries: China, Egypt, Iran, and Tunisia.

Government and Politics of the Middle East and North Africa

Government and Politics of the Middle East and North Africa PDF Author: Sean Yom
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 0429756399
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 550

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Book Description
The latest edition of this renowned textbook explores the states and regimes of the Middle East and North Africa. Presenting heavily revised, fully updated chapters contributed by the world’s leading experts, it analyzes the historical trajectory, political institutions, economic development, and foreign policies of the region’s nearly two dozen countries. The volume can be used in conjunction with its sister volume, The Societies of the Middle East and North Africa, for a comprehensive overview of the region. Chapters are organized and structured identically, giving insightful windows into the nuances of each country’s domestic politics and foreign relations. Data tables and extensive annotated bibliographies orient readers towards further research. Whether used in conjunction with its sister volume or on its own, this book provides the most comprehensive and detailed overview of the region’s varied politics. Five new experts cover the critical country cases of Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Iran. All chapters cover the latest events, including trends that have remarkably changed in just a few years like the gradual end of the Syrian civil war. As such, this textbook is invaluable to students of Middle Eastern politics.. The ninth edition brings substantial changes. All chapters also have a uniform, streamlined structure that explores the historical context, social and economic environment, political institutions, regime dynamics, and foreign policy of each country. Fact boxes and political maps are now far more extensive, and photographs and images also help illustrate key points. Annotated bibliographies are vastly expanded, providing nothing short of the best list of research references for each country.

False Dawn

False Dawn PDF Author: Steven A. Cook
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190611413
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 361

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Book Description
In False Dawn, noted Middle East regional expert Steven A. Cook offers a sweeping narrative account of the tumultuous past half decade, moving from Turkey to Tunisia to Egypt to Libya and beyond. The result is a powerful explanation of why the Arab Spring failed.

Realism and Democracy

Realism and Democracy PDF Author: Elliott Abrams
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108415628
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 315

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Book Description
This book makes a realpolitik argument for supporting democracy in the Arab world, drawing on four decades of policy experience.

How the West Stole Democracy from the Arabs

How the West Stole Democracy from the Arabs PDF Author: Elizabeth F. Thompson
Publisher: Grove Press
ISBN: 9781611854640
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 496

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Book Description
The story of a pivotal moment in modern world history, when representative democracy became a political option for Arabs - and how the West denied the opportunity.

The Only Democracy in the Middle East

The Only Democracy in the Middle East PDF Author: Yadin Yinon
Publisher: Bear Mountain Press
ISBN: 098584552X
Category : Young Adult Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 506

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Book Description
The Only Democracy in the Middle East is a compelling narrative non-fiction that offers a glimpse into Israel’s backstage, behind the tinseled tourism hype and worn Zionist clichés. Centered on the life of a former IDF staff captain and Israeli electoral candidate named Shaul Elkeslasi, the book is a scathing exposé that documents his confrontation with the grim realities of Israeli political deception and abuse. In punishing detail it exposes the inner workings of a state very different from the enlightened republic Israel is thought to be—a ruthless rogue regime whose bloody machinations with the Jewish people since Zionism’s inception have been kept airtight thanks to the axiomatic claim that Israel is a democracy. In the utopia envisioned by Israeli Deep State, every citizen would be born with the knowledge that Israel’s designation as a democracy is euphemistic. However the idiosyncrasies of human nature such as they are, there will always be Israelis who believe what they are taught and entertain the offensive notion that every private citizen has the right to run for office; that government was created to serve the people; that freedom of speech is an elementary right; that freedom of religion is mandated by the rule of law. That law and rights and freedoms exist. As stride confidently into the public square, they have no idea that they’re trespassing on the private property of a mafia compound. And by the time they know, it’s too late—even to warn someone else. The present chronicle has one purpose: to expose the anarchy and moral decadence that define Israeli government today, so that the next time an Israeli citizen chooses to exercise the fundamental liberties guaranteed in a democracy, he won’t find himself in the grave with a bullet in his head.

The Arab Spring

The Arab Spring PDF Author: Jason Brownlee
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199660069
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 353

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Book Description
Several years after the Arab Spring began, democracy remains elusive in the Middle East. While Tunisia has made progress towards democracy, other countries that overthrew their rulers - Egypt, Yemen, and Libya - remain in authoritarianism and instability. This volume provides a foundational exploration of the Arab Spring's successes and failures.

The Arab Revolts

The Arab Revolts PDF Author: David McMurray
Publisher: Indiana University Press
ISBN: 0253009685
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 274

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Book Description
The 2011 eruptions of popular discontent across the Arab world, popularly dubbed the Arab Spring, were local manifestations of a regional mass movement for democracy, freedom, and human dignity. Authoritarian regimes were either overthrown or put on notice that the old ways of oppressing their subjects would no longer be tolerated. These essays from Middle East Report—the leading source of timely reporting and insightful analysis of the region—cover events in Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Syria, and Yemen. Written for a broad audience of students, policymakers, media analysts, and general readers, the collection reveals the underlying causes of the revolts by identifying key trends during the last two decades leading up to the recent insurrections.